1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a community management server, communication terminal, content transmission system, and content transmission method, enabling direct content redistribution between communication terminals belonging to the same community.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, ring tones and other digital content has been made available for purchase using portable telephone sets and other devices. For example, using portable telephone sets or other communication terminals capable of connection to a network, images, music, video, and other digital content can be downloaded from a server which provides content. On the other hand, in recent years, users who share common interests have formed communities (groups), so that users belonging to the same community have shared content in common.
For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2001-283071, a content distribution system is described in which, when a certain user A downloads specific content from a content distribution service server, and wishes to present the content as a gift to user B belonging to the same community, user A, by transmitting the registration ID of user B registered in the community to the community site server, causes the community site server to appeal to the content distribution service server to enable downloading by user B also of the content from the content distribution service server, so that by this means content can be redistributed to user B belonging to the same community.